In the Heart of Palma: How Workers in Salons and Restaurants Fell into Exploitation

In the Heart of Palma: How Workers in Salons and Restaurants Fell into Exploitation

Key question: How could a system of exploitation arise in the middle of Palma and remain undetected for so long?

The National Police recently arrested several people after investigators in Palma de Mallorca received tips about exploitation in hair and hospitality businesses. Five suspects of Moroccan origin are at the center of the case: they are accused of employing people without valid papers and systematically violating their rights. Those affected are said to have worked daily from 9:00 to 22:00, received no contracts and been accommodated in the businesses' back rooms.

In short: this is not an isolated incident but a business model that isolates people while circumventing bureaucratic protections. The investigation began after an anonymous email pointed to possible human rights violations. Together with the labor inspectorate, investigators reviewed the allegations; the housing authority and urban planning department imposed fines on the premises' owners.

Critical analysis

Two factors stand out immediately: first, the vulnerability of people without residency status who remain silent for fear of deportation; second, the demand for cheap labor in Palma, where tourism, a dense hospitality sector and small service providers create tight profit margins, as explained in Empty Tables, Tight Wallets: Mallorca's Gastronomy at a Crossroads. Those offering illegal employment save on wages, social contributions and rest periods — creating unfair competition for legally employed workers, a dynamic related to the pattern described in When One Job Isn't Enough: Why People in Mallorca Often Work Multiple Shifts.

Inspections are possible but rarely sufficient. The labor inspectorate operates with limited resources; unannounced checks are difficult to carry out, especially when tips remain anonymous or workers have little contact with the outside world. The fact that those affected were forbidden to speak with customers makes it even harder to detect abuses.

What's missing from the public debate

We often talk about isolated cases and raids, but less often about the structural causes. Honest discussions are lacking about: (1) how access to the labor market can be made safe and orderly; (2) how tourism businesses can be held responsible for fair working conditions; (3) how neighborhoods and customers can report concerns without endangering people. There is too little discussion about how housing markets and commercial space are converted into living quarters — a practice that promotes cheap accommodation for workers and creates hygiene problems, a trend connected to the rise in rough sleeping reported in When Work Isn't Enough: Palma and the Growing Number of Homeless People.

Everyday scene from Palma

Imagine the Plaça Major on a February morning: benches, a bus, then the small door of a salon in a side street — inside the low hum of a machine, outside the voices of tourists. A young man arrives early, closes the door, speaks little. He washes hair, cuts. When customers ask for him, the boss evades. This is not a crime novel; it is a scene that occurs in retail streets and lanes of Palma more often than we like to admit, and similar hidden practices have been exposed in pieces such as Hidden Offers in Mallorca's Massage Salons: Between Legality and Coercion.

Concrete solutions

Those who want to act need practical steps. Proposals that can be implemented immediately: (1) more mobile inspection teams that can carry out unannounced checks; (2) anonymous, multilingual reporting channels for workers, accessible also outside office hours; (3) cooperation between police, the labor inspectorate, the island council and NGOs that provide shelters and legal advice; (4) time-limited work permits for victims so they find the courage to testify; (5) fines and trade-license sanctions that make the business model unattractive; (6) regular inspections of living spaces used as back rooms.

Important: these proposals need political backing and funding. Inspections alone are not enough if there is no alternative for affected people. It is about prevention, protection and a quick way out of dependency.

What local politicians and residents in Palma can do

At the local level, awareness campaigns in neighborhoods with many small salons and eateries help. Cafés, market stalls and neighbors are often witnesses — one tip can be enough if it reaches the right authorities safely. At the same time, municipal licensing bodies should check when issuing new permits whether commercial spaces might be abused as sleeping quarters.

Concise conclusion

The raid removed immediate cases of exploitation but did not dismantle the system. As long as economic pressure, insufficient controls and the fear of affected people combine, islands of exploitation will remain possible. Anyone who values Palma as a city of service and hospitality must also defend the conditions that make that possible: visible work, dignified housing and routes through which affected people can seek help without fear.